Top Trends for 2023 Kitchen and Bath Design

February 1, 2023

Is 2023 the year you are going to update your home’s functionality and style? Consider your top priorities and focus on key living spaces like the kitchen and bathrooms where you will see the greatest impact on your lifestyle and your home’s value. Get inspired by some of the top kitchen and bath design trends for 2023, and then start making plans to create your ideal home!

Nature-inspired designs

Your home should be a refuge where you can relax and spend time with family and friends. Nothing says comfort like the nature-inspired elements that are a top choice for 2023 kitchen and bath designs. Including natural elements in your home design helps your living spaces feel grounded and connected to the outdoors, which promotes relaxation. You can achieve this through your chosen materials and color scheme, by adding plants, and by creating a visible connection through windows and doors.

Organic materials such as wood, stone, and natural textiles are all excellent choices for bringing a natural influence into the home. Wood cabinetry, especially in a lighter finish that allows the natural grain to shine through, helps set the tone for a nature-inspired design. Stone tiles and countertops bring the one-of-a-kind beauty of a natural material as well as a unique texture to your home.

Take your cue from these natural materials when establishing a color scheme for your kitchen or bath designs. Stick to earthy tones in soothing shades or bring in blues and greens that make you feel like you are walking in a forest or sitting by the beach. Add color and enhance your room’s air quality by including plants in your home. For a bath design, go for plants that thrive in a moisture-prone room.

Large windows, glass doors, and spaces that open to outdoor entertainment areas help you feel connected to the outdoors. They let you enjoy natural sunlight during the daytime and allow your outdoor landscaping to become a backdrop for your interior design.

Classic Styles

Trends come and go, but there are certain design styles that have staying power. This is important when choosing a style for your kitchen design or bath remodel since you are investing in your home and lifestyle. Unless you are fully committed to rustic industrial or Mediterranean style décor, then it helps to choose a design style that gels with the rest of your home and that you won’t get tired of in a year’s time.

Transitional styles are very popular and it’s easy to see why. It offers a balanced foundation for your home’s style with plenty of scope to add personality through small design touches or accessories. Transitional combines elements of traditional and modern designs, giving you the best of both worlds.

This versatile design style typically features cabinetry with clean lines, such as Shaker style kitchen cabinets, paired with a softer neutral color palette and natural materials. Transitional designs often work well with a darker accent color for finite spaces like a beverage bar, butler’s pantry, or powder room. Soften modern lines in a transitional style by layering textures into your bath or kitchen design to create a warm, welcoming environment. This can be done with soft furnishings, natural wood, and textiles.

Mixed Metallic Finishes

From kitchen faucets to cabinet hardware, showerheads, light fixtures, and more, metallic finishes feature throughout kitchen and bath designs. These essential, functional elements become fun design accessories when you choose the style as well as the metal type and finish. Traditionally, the rule of thumb was to pick one metallic finish and keep it consistent throughout the room. This year will see many homeowners putting their personal stamp on their design by mixing metallic finishes, creating a more eclectic look. Brass, gold, bronze, stainless, and matte black are all popular tones that can be combined to create a dazzling style.

When mixing metals, make sure to do it with intention by choosing two contrasting tones rather than colors that are too similar. Keep this consistent throughout your room and consider using mixed metals to create a focal point such a matte black light fixture over an island paired with a satin brass faucet.

Spa Style Retreats

2023 brings with it an increased focus on wellbeing. There’s no better way to promote your physical and mental health than by creating a soothing home atmosphere. You start and end your day in the bathroom, so why not update your bathroom design’s style and functionality to create a relaxing space?

Spa style bath designs require clean lines and clear surfaces, so pay careful attention to your bathroom storage. Include a vanity cabinet with customized accessories to keep everything organized (and off your countertop and floor!). Incorporate accessible storage wherever you need it, such as a ledge near the tub or recessed niches in the shower.

Spa style bathrooms often have a freestanding tub as the focal point, especially if a soak in the bath is your ideal way to wind down at the end of a long week. Choose a model that is as beautiful as it is functional. Consider a slipper tub model where one side is higher to allow you to lean back and relax. Showers are equally important in bathrooms geared to relaxation, particularly a large, open shower or an enclosed steam shower that will make you feel like you’ve stepped into your favorite luxury spa.

Include natural materials and soothing textures in your spa bathroom, like floating wood shelves and natural stone surfaces. Carefully consider your lighting design so you can set the tone for your bathroom, from targeted task lighting for applying make up to softer light for a relaxing wind down. Give your bathroom the ultimate luxury touch by adding decorative light fixtures, like a pendant, chandelier, or sconces.

Statement Islands

Multi-functional kitchen designs are truly the center of home life, where we fix Saturday morning pancakes, host wine and cheese parties, and help the kids with homework. At the heart of this busy space sits the kitchen island, which has become an essential component of managing kitchen work zones, storage, and more. If you have space, consider incorporating a large island, or even more than one island, to maximize use of your kitchen.

This year’s islands are going one step further to become a style statement and a focal point of the kitchen design. There are many ways to achieve this, including:

• Let your island stand out in a contrasting cabinet color, or even a different cabinet style.
• Choose light fixtures, barstools, and other accessories that draw the eye.
• Install a dramatic countertop that stands out from your perimeter cabinetry. This could be a different color or material or go for a stunning double waterfall countertop like this kitchen design.

Color Schemes

White is always a classic choice for kitchen and bathroom designs, but updated neutrals are taking over color schemes in 2023. Shades like cream, taupe, off white, and earth tones are versatile choices that bring a warmer feel to a neutral color palette. They also pair well with this year’s popular natural materials and can be dressed up with a variety of accessories.

Deeper shades are still a stylish choice for kitchens and baths, such as dark blue, green, and black, but this year sees new shades come to forefront of home design. Blue with green undertones and muted shades of blue and green are becoming more popular this year, as they bring a lighter feel to these spaces. Wood tones are also still a top choice, especially in lighter finishes.

Customized Beverage Bars

A customized beverage center provides a designated space to store and serve drinks, which is a game changer when designing an organized kitchen design for a busy home. Install your beverage bar where it is accessible to seating areas but does not interfere with cooking or serving. Your beverage center could be in the kitchen design itself or in an adjacent living or dining space.

Incorporate customized storage for all your favorites, whether that is coffee, wine, or gin and tonics. Include countertop workspace to prepare drinks, and add display for specialty mugs, glasses, or bottles. A beverage sink and undercounter refrigerator are useful additions that allow your guests to refill their own drinks.

Your beverage bar can also help define your style. Include a distinctive cabinetry style or a contrasting color to set it apart from the rest of your kitchen design. Depending on the location of your beverage bar, you can even install a bold backsplash or a distinctive countertop material that will really set your beverage bar apart.

Statement Lighting

We all know how important lighting is to our homes, but especially to busy rooms like kitchens and bathrooms. Any space where you wield knives and read recipes, or shave and apply mascara, requires task lighting to be able to see clearly. Include targeted lighting directed at countertops, cooking areas, and storage in a kitchen design, and around the vanity cabinet and shower in a bath design.

Balance this with ambient light sources that allow you to set a softer mood for times when you want to relax or entertain guests. Dimmer switches or smart lighting controls enable changing light levels depending on the time of day or activity.

Kitchen and bath designs also benefit from incorporating statement light fixtures that can provide essential light but also become a focal point. This year’s decorative light fixtures take this to a whole new level, with architectural lines, dramatic shapes, bold colors, and mixed metallic finishes. These light fixtures do more than illuminate your space, they help define the room’s style with the latest in pendants, chandeliers, and sconces.

Custom Storage

Storage is essential to an organized, clutter free, and stylish home, and this is especially important in a busy kitchen design or bathroom. The answer is to create a custom kitchen cabinet design or vanity design outfitted with specialized storage accessories. This ensures that surfaces remain clear, and everything can be easily put away when you are finished with it. This year sees a renewed focus on storage that caters for daily life, that can be easily used by all family members, and that enhances your room’s style. Here are a few of the storage solutions you’ll see in this year’s designs:

• Food is the heart of the kitchen, so custom pantry storage continues to dominate kitchen designs. This can look like a section of cabinetry outfitted with pull out storage accessories, a reach in or walk in pantry closet, or a full butler’s pantry. The latter is becoming increasingly popular as it can double as a prep kitchen, where you can also clear away dirty dishes during a party!

• Kitchen storage also focuses on drawers in place of lower cabinets. Drawers come in all sizes and depths and can be customized with dividers or peg inserts to keep everything organized. Store heavy items in drawers where they can be easily viewed and lifted without straining your back.
• Floating shelves are popular in both kitchens and bathrooms, as they promote an open, airy feel while still providing room for storage and display.

Backsplashes That Blend…Or Stand Out!

The kitchen backsplash protects your walls from moisture, grease, and food splatters. This essential surface also sits at eye level and influences your kitchen design style. Backsplash trends are moving toward turning this wall space into a design focal point. The trend toward removing some upper cabinets means this wall space stands out even more, so give it careful consideration when planning your kitchen remodel. Here are a few of the latest styles that will transform your kitchen walls:

• Choose a slab backsplash in quartz, marble, or granite, typically the same material as the countertop. This means your backsplash is a natural continuation of the countertop, but still gives the kitchen a dramatic look.

• Stone tiles add a touch of luxury to any kitchen design and bring natural texture to your space.
• Tiles have moved beyond classic rectangles to enhance your design with shapes and patterns, like petal, arabesque, or hexagonal shapes.
• Some homeowners are choosing to accent their neutral kitchen color scheme with a bold backsplash color, turning it into a unique design feature.

Find your ideal design style!

Have these design trends inspired you to bring your home design vision to life? Think about your top priorities for a home remodel, whether that is changing your kitchen’s layout, updating storage, a new color scheme, or a better set up for entertaining guests. Then stop by our Gainesville, FL showroom to start planning!